A couple of months ago, we were in San Diego watching the solar eclipse by accident and I started seeing images of a massive rock formation crop up across the Internet as photographers had flocked to “Horseshoe Bend” in Arizona to capture it as it happened. Sadly, clouds obscured a lot of the images they posted, but it did make me want to go there to shoot (after all, it faces almost due west, perfect […]
Last October, during a visit to LA, a friend and I tried getting that ever sought-after “unique view” of the Hollywood sign. Despite signs threatening death to all tourists (I imagine it could be quite frustrating there!) the backroads surrounding the overlooks didn’t provide much in the way of an inspirational view and while we saw some fantastic houses, I left with nothing special in terms of photographs of the sign. This trip, I decided […]
Wow, it’s been a looooooong time since I wrote on here – and for that, I can only apologise. Those following me on facebook and twitter will know that it’s been a crazy busy few months, but I know that’s no excuse for not checking in on here every now and then. So tonight, I was planning to grab a few pictures of the 99% full moon – but instead the somewhat permanent feature of rain […]
Quick question: What do the following images have in common? The simple answer? They’d be impossible shots to take without some form of filter – and in this particular case, a filter which many people misunderstand or simply don’t think they need. That is, until they understand the power that it can have when shooting landscapes. It’s also one of the most frequently asked questions of land/seascape photographers – “how did you manage to do […]
This is a photograph I never thought I’d get – not only because I hadn’t planned a trip to Norway (the Northern Lights / Aurora Borealis had never been something I thought I would see for myself) – but also on the first dark Friday night there, having spent 4 hours freezing by the side of a lake, they showed absolutely no sign of appearing! That’s right – less than 30 minutes after getting to Tromsø, […]
After a gruelling CES in Las Vegas, a free day in San Francisco was just what I needed, and the prospect of spending the day shooting with a great photographer friend of mine – Scott Marrs – was not to be missed 🙂 With my new Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 L II in my bag, it was time to get the tripod and ND filters out to go grab some images. We actually spent the day […]
Ashamed as I am to say it, given the amount of time I spend in and around Dorset, I’ve never once photographed Corfe Castle. It’s just down the road, and hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of photographers have captured it already, but for some reason, I’ve just never gone. So, with the sunrise now starting at a reasonable hour in the middle of winter, I decided to give it a try. The only problem […]
Knowing San Francisco relatively well, I knew that when I tried to get a sunrise shot of the Golden Gate Bridge back in August I was really setting myself up for failure. Waking up before 4am, we drove to one of the lookout points to find we couldn’t see even the front of the car – let alone the bridge and the city! Disappointed, we drove back and caught up with some much-needed sleep, but […]
“Welcome to Amboy” – a phrase which I’m sure was used many times in the past, but not any more. Apart from the (randomly) fully functioning post office, Amboy is now very much a ghost town, around half way between Palm Springs and Las Vegas. Having checked it out before we headed there, I knew that “Roy’s Motel” is actually a bit of an iconic landmark, locally. Postcards are sold with the famous sign and […]
There’s a jetty that sticks out into The Fleet in Dorset which has featured in many, many photographs but I never quite got around to finding out where it was. That is, until a friend of mine – Nick – asked to go out shooting for the afternoon to try out his new Canon 5D/II on some landscape shots around Dorset. Given the choice of more retouching, or maybe getting a nice new sunset shot, […]
“Bryce Point” – Print available to buy now Welcome to Bryce Canyon National Park – the last of the 5 parks and canyons I visited in August, including our trip to the amazing Antelope Canyon in Arizona (yes, I’ll upload those photos soon too!). Last year, I visited Joshua Tree National Park in California, and captured images that are now in use by the National Park Service (NPS) for their brochures and guides. So, following […]
It’s been a long time coming, it has to be said. For well over a year, I’ve wanted to shoot Antelope Canyon, having seen a few random photos of it on the web some time ago. The problem is, flying to Arizona purely to shoot one Canyon is a little bit over the top, so this was my opportunity to combine it with a US National Parks shoot – cool 🙂 With around 30GB of […]
Many of you will know the history to “bing” – Microsoft’s evolution to their original MSN search page. Granted, a lot less people would ever say they’re “binging” something than those who “google”, but hey – it’s used by a surprising amount of people. Last month, Microsoft launched a competition in association (rather randomly) with Dizzee Rascal – called “Your Britain”. What’s unique about bing is that it displays a different image every day […]
It’s that time of year again – the “awards season”. Ready with my entries for both the BIPP and RPS, I have decided this year that I won’t be submitting anything into the UK “Landscape Photographer of the Year” and instead divert that time, energy and money into a different (and in my view) more substantial competition: The International Photography Awards 2011. While the UK Landscape competition is strong, when I look at the panel […]
Two birds with one stone today: Number one, to get out and about shooting some landscapes in England for fun (I haven’t done that for a couple months now) and number two, to visit some places that are (embarrassingly) just down the road to which I’ve never been. So, Hive Beach is today’s focal point. On the way, I passed a stunning view of both St Catherine’s Chapel in Abbotsbury as well as the Fleet […]
In what turned out to be a somewhat bittersweet trip, my latest trip to Rome allowed me to photograph some “non-standard” shots instead of focusing on the main tourist landmarks as my previous (and first) visit had done. The “bittersweet” part? Well, who can forget the stranded thousands due to the snow at London’s Heathrow airport – unfortunately, British Airways seem to be in the list of those who can, as for all they know […]
Yes, it got to me. Not even two days after visiting Joshua Tree National Park, the fact I hadn’t seen the “big arch” finally made me crack. So, rental car on order, I finally managed to hunt down where it was through Google maps/earth/images… So, maps and iPhone in-pocket, I set out through Joshua Tree (the town) and hit the park through the same entrance Chuck and I had used two days prior. This time, […]
Yesterday, Chuck and I headed to Joshua Tree National Park just before sunset to see if the light would play nice and allow me to capture some cool colours against all the rocks and landscapes in the park. Although we got there a little later than planned, I got to use my ND filter for the first time since the summer, and the sky didn’t disappoint… First off, where is it? Well – here’s a […]